Method of making electrical leads

ABSTRACT

Method of producing electrical leads comprising steps of feeding a pair of wires to a conveyor type lead making machine having spaced apart wire grippers thereon. Wires are severed to provide two leads in the gripper at the loading station. As conveyor indexes, leads are carried towards a first terminal applicator. One lead is deflected when the lead gripper arrives at this first applicator and the other lead is presented to the applicator for termination. Lead gripper is moved by conveyor to second terminal applicator and the terminated lead is deflected, the other lead being presented to the second applicator for termination.

[ 1 Aug. 29, 1972 United States Patent Hammond [54] METHOD OF MAKINGELECTRICAL 2,976,895 3/1961 Durham.....................140/102 LEADSPrimary ExaminerJohn F. Campbell Assistant ExaminerRobert W. ChurchAttorney-Curtis, Morris & Safford, Marshall M. Holcombe, William J.Keating, William Hintze, Frederick W. Raring, Adrian J. La Rue and JayL. Seitchik p m a P c a u n W H w m m M mm ml am6 3P 2 mmmw MH F n e mm: n w m .m AB A 2 U HR [21] Appl. No.: 119,316 TRACT Method ofproducing electrical leads comprising steps Related US. Application Data[62] Division of Set. N0. 858,666, Sept. 27, 1969,

of feeding a pair of wires to a conveyor type lead making machine havingspaced apart wire grippers thereon. Wires are severed to provide twoleads in the gripper at the loading station. As conveyor indexes,

Pat. No. 3,583,055.

leads are carried towards a first terminal applicator. One lead isdeflected when the lead gripper arrives at AM 3 m3 6/ 9 92 2 9 1 1 31 MW94 21 2 m %m 24 11 L C s U 2 5 this first applicator and the other leadis presented to [51] Int. 43/00 [58] Field of Search....29/203, 630 A,629, 628, 428,

the applicator for termination. Lead gripper is moved by conveyor tosecond terminal applicator and the terminated lead is deflected, theother lead being presented to the second applicator for termination.

3 Claims, 1 Drawing figure References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS3,283,398 Andrew..................81/9.51 X

RELATED U.S. PATENT This application is a division of application Ser.No.

invention is practiced.

What s lai e is: l. A nie hoc l of producing electrical leads, each leadcomprising a length of wire having a terminal secured 858 666 filed Sept17 1969 and now U S Pat No 5 to at least one end thereof, said methodcomprising the 3,583,055, issued June 8, 1971. The parent application ishereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A commonly known type of lead making machinecomprises a conveyor having a plurality of wire gripper thereon, each ofwhich is adapted to hold an individual wire. A crimping press is locatedbeside the conveyor so that when wires are loaded in the grippers, theindividual wires will be carried towards, and presented to, the crimpingpress for application of a terminal. U.S. Pat. No. 2,768,425 shows aconveyor type lead making machine adapted to produce electrical leadshaving terminals on one end thereof and US. Pat. No. 3,029,494 shows aconveyor type machine which have terminals on both of their ends.

The instant invention is directed to a method of producing electricalleads with a machine of the general type shown in the above identifiedU.S. Pats. Nos. 3,029,494 and 2,768,425 and particularly to a methodwhich permits a substantial increase in the productivity of theseconveyor type lead making machines. An object of the invention is,therefore, to increase the productivity of conveyor type lead makingmachines of the general type shown in US. Pat. Nos. 2,768,245 and3,029,494.

The invention can be briefly described with I reference to theaccompanying single sheet of drawing which schematically shows a leadmaking machine of the general type described and claimed in U.S. Pat.No. 3,029,494. A pair of wires 226, 228 are drawn from supply reels bymeans of a wire feeding, cutting and stripping machine 224. The wiresare grasped by jaws 233 on a reciprocating head 230 of the machine andthe leading ends of the wires are delivered to a wire gripper on therighthand conveyor 232. The wires are cut and the insulation strippedfrom the trailing ends of the wires by blades mounted on mounting blocks240,242 and the trailing ends of the wires are gripped in a wire gripperon the left and conveyor 234. The conveyor is indexed to present thewires to crimping press 248,250 which are disposed beside conveyor 234and to crimping presses 246, 248 disposed beside conveyor 232. On eachside, one wire is deflected at each crimping station and the other wireis presented to the crimping press for application of a terminal to itsend. For example, as each lead gripper on the lefthand conveyor movespast the press 248, the upper wire is deflected by a deflector plate 256and the lower wire is presented to the press 248. When each grippersubsequently moves past the crimping press 250, the lower wire, whichwas previously terminated, is deflected by a plate 258, and the upperwire is presented to the press for application to a terminal.

In accordance with the instant method, the productivity of a conveyortype lead making machine can be almost doubled since it is not necessaryto reduce the speed of the machine when the method of the instant stepsof:

feeding first and second electrical conductors from two substantiallyendless sources along a predetermined path, simultaneously severing saidconductors in a severing zone to produce first and second electricalleads,

grasping said leads adjacent to their trailing ends, and moving saidleads laterally of their axes along a predetermined path past first andsecond terminal applying mechanisms with the trailing ends of said leadsextending laterally of said path towards said applying mechanisms,

deflecting the trailing end of said second lead as said leads move pastsaid first terminal applying mechanism and applying a terminal to thetrailing end of said first lead,

deflecting the trailing end of the said first lead as said leads movepast said second terminal applying mechanism and applying a terminal tothe end of said second lead.

2. A method of producing electrical leads, each lead comprising a lengthof wire having a terminal secured to at least one end, said methodcomprising the steps of:

simultaneously feeding a plurality of conductors along a firstpredetermined path, simultaneously severing said conductors in asevering zone to produce a plurality of electrical leads,

grasping all of said leads adjacent to their trailing ends and movingsaid leads laterally of their axes along a second predetermined pathpast a plurality of terminal applying mechanisms with the trailing endsof said leads extending laterally of said path and towards said applyingmechanisms,

deflecting the trailing ends of all of said leads excepting one selectedlead as said leads move past each of said applying mechanisms, said oneselected lead being a different lead at each of said applying mechanismsand,

applying a terminal at each of said terminal applying mechanisms to thesaid one lead which is not deflected, whereby, terminals are applied tosaid trailing ends of all of said leads during movement of said leadsalong said second path.

3. A method as set forth in claim 2 including the step of grasping theleading ends of said leads at the time the trailing ends of said leadsare grasped, moving the leading ends of said leads past an additionalplurality of terminal applying mechanisms while said trailing ends arebeing moved past said plurality of terminal applying mechanisms,deflecting the leading ends of all of said leads excepting one selectedlead as said leads move past each of said additional plurality ofterminal applying mechanisms said one selected lead being a differentlead at each of said additional plurality of terminal applyingmechanisms whereby, terminals are applied to the leading ends of all ofsaid leads.

1. A method of producing electrical leads, each lead comprising a lengthof wire having a terminal secured to at least one end thereof, saidmethod comprising the steps of: feeding first and second electricalconductors from two substantially endless sources along a predeterminedpath, simultaneously severing said conductors in a severing zone toproduce first and second electrical leads, grasping said leads adjacentto their trailing ends, and moving said leads laterally of their axesalong a predetermined path past first and second terminal applyingmechanisms with the trailing ends of said leads extending laterally ofsaid path towards said applying mechanisms, deflecting the trailing endof said second lead as said leads move past said first terminal applyingmechanism and applying a terminal to the trailing end of said firstlead, deflecting the trailing end of the said first lead as said leadsmove past said second terminal applying mechanism and applying aterminal to the end of said second lead.
 2. A method of producingelectrical leads, each lead comprising a length of wire having aterminal secured to at least one end, said method comprising the stepsof: simultaneously feeding a plurality of conductors along a firstpredetermined path, simultaneously severing said conductors in asevering zone to produce a plurality of electrical leads, grasping allof said leads adjacent to their trailing ends and moving said leadslaterally of their axes along a second predetermined path past aplurality of terminal applying mechanisms with the trailing ends of saidleads extending laterally of said path and towards said applyingmechanisms, deflecting the trailing ends of all of said leads exceptingone selected lead as said leads move past each of said applyingmechanisms, said one selected lead being a different lead at each ofsaid applying mechanisms and, applying a terminal at each of saidterminal applying mechanisms to the said one lead which is notdeflected, whereby, terminals are applied to said trailing ends of allof said leads during movement of said leads along said second path.
 3. Amethod as set forth in claim 2 including the step of grasping theleading ends of said leads at the time the trailing ends of said leadsare grasped, moving the leading ends of said leads past an additionalplurality of terminal applying mechanisms while said trailing ends arebeing moved past said plurality of terminal applying mechanisms,deflecting the leading ends of all of said leads excepting one selectedlead as said leads move past each of said additional plurality ofterminal applying mechanisms said one selected lead being a differentlead at each of said additional plurality of terminal applyingmechanisms whereby, terminals are applied to the leading ends of all ofsaid leads.